Tom Brady's surgeon: Redskins must change offense to protect RGIII

Jan. 10, 2013
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Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III walks the sidelines during pre-game warmups prior to the start of their NFL playoff football game against the Seahawks, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2012, in Landover, Md. Seahawks defeated the Redskins 24-14. / Richard Lipski, AP

by Jim Corbett, USA TODAY Sports

by Jim Corbett, USA TODAY Sports

A renowned orthopedic surgeon who repaired New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady's torn anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments said Robert Griffin III could return from Wednesday's ACL and lateral collateral ligament repair in time for the Washington Redskins' 2013 season opener.

But Griffin probably will have to change his game, and the Redskins must limit the demand for him to run.

How the team handles the demands on Griffin's legs will determine not only how quickly he returns to play at an elite level, but also how long the star quarterback's career lasts, Dr. Neal ElAttrache told USA TODAY Sports.

"There's a good chance that he's going to be an impact player again, there's also a very good chance that it's going to be with a slightly different style of play,'' said ElAttrache, an orthopedic surgeon at Kerlan-Jobe Orthopeadic Clinic in Los Angeles. "I don't think he'll be 100% in six months or nine months.

"I do think he'll play in the 2013 season, however. I do not think he will be playing the same way he was playing this year, and whether that's a permanent play-style change he makes or not remains to be seen.

ElAttrache added: "If there is a silver lining to this injury, it may end up prolonging RGIII's career. From his ability to play and survive in the NFL, coming back from this injury, he will need some evolution in his game.''

During Sunday's wild-card loss to the Seattle Seahawks, Griffin aggravated an LCL injury, initially suffered Dec. 9 against the Baltimore Ravens, and also tore the ACL that had been previously reconstructed while he was in college in 2009, the team said.

"If you look at how he was playing and what was happening to him, RGIII barely made it out of this season without another concussion,'' ElAttrache said. "If you look at how he went about playing his position, the longevity of a guy like that is not the same as a pro-style (more pocket-based) quarterback.

"Look at the longevity of a running back in the NFL compared to a pro-style quarterback who plays the game like a Tom Brady or Peyton Manning, like an Aaron Rodgers. Look at how much shorter the lifespan is for a running back. It would be unreasonable to think that you'd be able to play 16-game regular seasons, plus postseasons and preseasons, playing the way RGIII has and center your franchise around that guy.

"Unless you have another two guys who can play like him, what are you doing?''

ElAttrache weighs in heavily on the need for the Shanahans to adapt in an effort to help preserve the rookie's longevity.

"Tom (Brady) is as mobile now as he was before his 2008 ACL injury,'' ElAttrache said. "But he was never doing the things at his position that a guy like RGIII was. That's the other ingredient in RGIII's return to play -- exactly what demands is that particular player going to be putting on that injured part?

"Luckily enough, he's a great enough talent, he's got a great arm, he's very smart and he's learned how to read NFL defensess quicker than any rookie quarterback who's come into the league. And he's still very mobile.

"He's got so many facets to his game. He's still going to be an impact quarterback, somebody the Redskins and their fans can look forward to seeing play and lead their team. He's going to be fine.''

The Redskins holding up Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson as the role model for a speedy recovery from knee surgery isn't realistic or fair to Griffin in this case, the doctor said.

"Everybody wants to make the comparison to Adrian Peterson,'' ElAttrache says. "What he did is unprecedented. However, he did not have any additional surgery other than his ACL. He had a mild sprain in his MCL. He did not have any surgery on his MCL.

"What RGIII had is a significant difference in regards to the surgery he had, the extent of his injury and what's going to need to be done for healing this thing. That repair is going to need to be protected.''

ElAttrache recommends that Griffin wear a knee brace to help protect the LCL repair for the entire 2013 season since the LCL fix is likely to slow his rehabilitation more than had it been an isolated ACL tear.

"The lateral repair is going to slow things down at first on the front end, so you have to protect that lateral repair,'' ElAttrache says. "So early on, you're going to be a little less aggressive with motion and weight bearing, things like that. It definitely will affect the pace and aggressiveness of rehab.

"I wouldn't be surprised because of the injury to the lateral side of his knee, if at least for the upcoming season, he wears a brace supporting that lateral side this upcoming season.''

Did playing with the sprained and now aggravated LCL make Griffin susceptible to the ACL tear?

"Theoretically, any time you injure any of the supporting ligaments in the knee, there's going to be more stress and torque that the ACL is exposed to,'' ElAttrache said. "So if you have an LCL or MCL injury, theoretically, there's going to be more stress on the ACL.

"It's quite possible he may have tweaked his knee earlier in that game and may have compromised that ACL and he didn't necessarily tell anybody. The bottom line is: They play a dangerous game. And there's an inherent risk that has to be accepted by player and everybody involved.

"It's almost useless in a situation like this to try to fix responsibility, culpability, blame. It's almost ridiculous to think of that.''

ElAttrache laughed about the strong medical opinions he dropped unsolicited into the Redskins' suggestion box.

"I don't know if they're going to like my comments -- they're going to think I'm speaking out of turn, maybe,'' ElAttrache said. "But I wish the best for RGIII. He's one of this game's gems.''